Today's ride is a circuitous route, designed to avoid the busier roads and to end with the spectacular crossing of the coastal ridge and descend to the ocean just north of Bogeda Bay on Coleman Valley Road. This road is well known to cyclists; the Tour of California race did it in the other, more difficult direction, this year. Brenda and I did it in the other direction, in the fog, in 2001.We leave Petaluma via residential and industrial areas and quickly find ourselves among gently rolling hills of rural Marin County, passing farms and dairies founded by Italian immigrants in the 19th century. Ride the length of Chilena Valley Road (into the wind - see picture of flags) - passing 
through the small villages of Tomales, Valley Ford, Freestone, then we climb among the redwoods to Occidental. We rode the spectacular Coleman Valley Road to the coast, climbing to an open ridge line that provides views south to Pt Reyes; then descend steeply 1,000 feet to Bogada Bay. 
through the small villages of Tomales, Valley Ford, Freestone, then we climb among the redwoods to Occidental. We rode the spectacular Coleman Valley Road to the coast, climbing to an open ridge line that provides views south to Pt Reyes; then descend steeply 1,000 feet to Bogada Bay. 
Bodega Bay is named for Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra, captain of the Spanish ship that reached the bay in 1775. The Russians were the first European settlers, setting up port facilities here in 1811 to support their hunting of the sea otter. The sea otters neared extinction in the 1830's and the Russians withdrew from California in 1841.
Total ride today was 51 miles with 3,600 feet of climbing. It was a beautiful ride, marred only by the strong winds.
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